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Speed cameras in general are a total waste of time if you ask me.
They are blatantly there, to catch people speeding but they don't
do justice. People speeding see them at the side of the road and
slow down to avoid being snapped, but as soon as they are out sight
people carry on their normal speeds. It's pathetic. I believe that
they should be hidden so people can be snapped in the action.
ANNETTE,
DEVON
Firstly
a compliment to Anglia Railways - last week my wife and I had a
day out on their rover ticket. We caught six trains during the day.
Not one was dirty and all were on time. Are things really improving
or were we just lucky. On a totally different subject I wish to
complain about the spread of the totally unreasonable 20mph speed
limits. I understand that they are around schools but that excuse
is for one hour twice a day for about two thirds of the year. For
the rest of the time can commonsense not prevail and return the
road to its former limit. I, for one, would feel very aggrieved
if I were 'done' for doing 30mph in a 20 zone outside of school
time when sensible drivers should, in any case, already be exercising
extreme care.
STUART,
BRAMPTON
It would seem from most comments that people are happy to spend
longer on their journeys each year. Over the last few years more
and more speed restrictions have been applied that slow us down
even more. Buses are a joke - filthy and slow. The trains are more
dangerous and slower that 100 years ago. So many drivers now come
out of one of the many 40/50mph speed limits and just stay at that
speed, holding up those of us who wish to get to our destinations
in a reasonable time. They then wonder why others wish to overtake!
Try Eurostar to the continent: London to the tunnel - stop/go at
speeds between 0 and 50mph. Come out of the tunnel and in no time
you are cruising at 180mph! We are the laughing stock of Europe.
DAVID
CUNNINGHAM, AYLSHAM
As
a recent migrant from London to Norfolk, I can't see what all the
fuss is about. The road network appears to serve the county well.
So what if it takes an hour and a half to traverse the A1065? It
used to take me longer than that to travel the 9 miles from Bromley
to central London on a good day. The scenery is better and the drivers
more courteous too.
RUSS,
NORWICH
Whilst
I sympathise and mainly agree with Matt from Norwich's remarks about
slower drivers, one must realise that a speed limit is just that
& NOT a target!
I see far too much bullying from other drivers in the form of tailgating.
Live & let live. One of my main grumbles is people who drive at
an inconsistent speed, hovering between 45 & 60mph making overtaking
impossible. Please make up your mind guys & gals! But my main concern
is maniac drivers, often in coaches & vans, who bomb around narrow
country lanes with no thought for other road users, especially pedestrians
- so much for quiet lanes! These people seem to presume that everyone
else will get out of their way, this might not always be the case
so please take more care. Happy Motoring!
HOLLY,
BRIGGATE
Whilst
I agree that many of the roads in this county are not as good as
they might be, I would say that most of the main A-roads are still
good enough for safe travel at 60 mph in normal conditions.
So, where 60 is the speed limit, why do so many drivers insist on
causing large queues of traffic by driving slower than this? I am
certainly not advocating dangerous overtaking manoeuvres, as these
are clearly foolish, even if no accident is caused. However it is
easy to understand how drivers become frustrated when they have
been stuck behind somebody doing 10-20 mph below the speed limit
for miles on end, and for no apparent reason. It states in the Highway
Code that slower drivers should pull over to let others past, but
this never seems to happen.
So, if you are one of these drivers - PLEASE, for all our sakes,
either drive a little faster, or if you don't have the confidence
to do this, then pull over now and again to let the rest of us pass.
Of course, this won't solve all the traffic problems, but I'm sure
it would improve traffic flow somewhat, and may even prevent a few
accidents.
MATT,
NORWICH
I've
been reading the letters about different roads and carriageways
in Norfolk, and I can tell you all, you'll be perfectly safe from
me as I never drive when in England. I drive on freeways over here,
whether in Southern California around Los Angeles, the San Francisco
Bay area or Oregon with logging trucks and triple trailers trying
to scare the pants off anybody in the way or Florida 119 from Tampa
Airport. But whoever devised the roundabout system that you have
- and some of the other road systems- must have been having several
bad weeks. What's with the roundabouts that are just flat painted
circles for goodness' sake?
ALBERTA
SAYER CONGER, WILDERVILLE, OREGON
What
a nightmare! I travel down the A47 - I want to get to Wroxham. I
know I will go down that racetrack by the showground through the
chicanes, through Costessey and down to the magic roundabout. Turn
left on that outer ring road - my God am I on a racing circuit?
Drivers weaving left to right: must be the warm-up lap. Oh, now
I know what it is, this lane filters left only. Damn, now I have
gone into a turn right only lane. We are all right now, by the fire
station up the hill. At last, the Wroxham roundabout. Not bad, must
be a lap record: two hours.
Sorry
to be flippant, but that ring road must be the worst road in Norwich
- it is to strangers anyway. You should follow Leicester's example
of road planning - everybody gets lost. You cannot go fast because
you do not know where you are going.
JOHN
KENDALL, LEICESTER
Following
your 'dangerous roads' article, I would like to suggest that 90
degree exits and entries on dual carriageways or national speed
limit single carriage ways are more prominently indicated. A prime
example is the 90 degree turn-off on the A11 to the villages of
Ketteringham and East Carlton which is situated approximately one
mile south of the Thickthorne Roundabout. Once clear of the city,
it would seem to be a relief to many drivers to 'put their foot
down' on the first 'fast' stretch. However for drivers using that
exit it is very stressful believing that you are about to be rammed
in the back by a driver who does not realise that this is not a
slip road, and that the car in front cannot safely drive that corner
on two wheels at 70 miles per hour because the driver behind failed
to observe the road signs. The flashing speed limit signs seem to
have a positive affect on road safety. Could something similar be
trialled - an intermittent sign indicating a 90 degree turn ahead
on such carriageways.
L
ROLFE, KUALA LUMPUR
The
A1065 is a doddle compared to the A140, which should be dualled.
M
GAZE, DISS
We
must ask why people travel at excessive speed. Noting that it is
always "people" who travel too fast, never you or me. The speed
brigade appears to consist of young hooligans, trying to impress
their mates, or courier drivers and sales reps in a frightful hurry
to meet their targets.
This
is often the case due to speed restrictions in & around towns. Consider
the infamous A1065. Following the expansion of Swaffham, the building
of new housing estates, commercial estates, and the superstore,
the 30mph & 40mph limits have been expanded further and further.
It should be remembered that the A1065 is a major through road;
Swaffham exists as a direct result of being on such a road, otherwise
it would just be another sleepy little village.
Indeed,
if the limits in Swaffham are pushed further south, and the limits
at Mundford are extended north, it would only require the residents
in Hilborough to jump on the bandwagon, and this entire stretch
of A1065 could be effectively closed to through traffic.
Of
course, those drivers forced to take a 30 mile detour to avoid the
A1065 restrictions, would probably drive at 90-100mph to make up
for lost time; but that would be someone else's problem!
DEE,
SWAFFHAM
The
Parish Council of Mundford, a village of approximately 1,500 people
divided by the A134 and A1065, has been campaigning for the reduction
of the current 50mph speed limit for many years on safety grounds.
Until last year the A134 was the responsibility of the Highways
Authority who, before surrendering their responsibility to Norfolk
County Council, after an independent survey on the A134 recommended
that the speed limit be dropped to 40mph and that a proper school
crossing should be actioned. Although their survey did not include
the A1065, they also recommended a reduction in speed limit on this
road. Norfolk County Council has refused to accept a need for reduced
speed. Twelve months and many accidents later it would appear that
they may have agreed to allow a reduction to 40mph, but nothing
has yet been done. It was also suggested to NCC that the start of
the speed limit on the A1065 be extended towards Swaffham to take
in a new road entrance to Manor Farm Duck Factory, a garage forecourt,
two busy road junctions and a transport cafe. Likewise we asked
for the start of the speed limit on the A134 to be extended back
further towards Thetford which we hoped would reduce the speed of
traffic in to our dangerous roundabout on the junction of the A134
and the A1065. We are still a village awaiting serious tragedy on
our roads, and action from by Norfolk County Council.
CHARLES MOSS, MUNDFORD
There
should be more money invested road improvements such as making junctions
safer and reducing the number of accesses to and from minor roads
on main roads. There should also be a move from investment in dual
carriageways and bypasses to investing in bringing back and extending
the old rail network.
STEPHEN
OLLEY, MILEHAM
Traffic
laws were enacted from a history of tragic death and injury mishaps.
The safety lessons learned seem to have been lost by many road users.
Drivers who fail to heed the law are "armed" criminals and a potential
threat to all others who use the public roads. A new "zero tolerance"
must be applied fairly, but firmly. An improved and lower threshold
legal definition of dangerous driver needs to be established and
all identified dangerous drivers should be denied the privilege
of driving on public roads until their case is held before a court
and their vehicle "weapon" confiscated on the spot. If convicted,
these "weapons" must be sold to pay for better road safety schemes
or court costs.
HJ,
NORFOLK
I
have the misfortune to live at the Castle Acre junction to the A1065,
and am not in the least surprised to see that this is the most dangerous
stretch of road in East Anglia. I have witnessed several accidents
at this junction and dread having to pull onto the road at any time
of day, and in the morning in particular. A hill crest makes it
impossible to see oncoming traffic coming from Fakenham and the
shortsighted and selfish use of excessive speed of many motorists
endangers both my and their lives quite frequently. The introduction
of a 50mph speed restriction and speed cameras by this small but
busy turning would be very welcome.
SUSAN,
NEWTON BY CASTLEACRE
I'm
a fairly new driver but drive from Suffolk to Norfolk every weekend,
over 40 miles of the 60 mile journey is on single carriageways and
I feel I can tell when it's safe to overtake and when not to, the
problem is people that don't have experience on country roads and
are used to the other lane always being free. It's a fact, drivers
need to change how they drive the roads, sounds very simple and
almost patronising but if you are at all unsure, don't risk it.
If you do the above maybe you'll one day be one of those 'Sunday
drivers' that you are always so eager to get by (I know I am). If
you'd ever want to be one that is!
CHRIS,
FELIXSTOWE
Using the A1065 reasonably regularly, I am constantly amazed by
the number of motorists I see who are clearly driving too fast,
overtaking in an unsafe way (coming up to the brow of a hill or
on a bend where it is impossible to tell if there is any oncoming
traffic), or driving too closely to the car in front. All of it
bad driving - not a bad road. This emphasis of blaming "the road"
is yet another way of trying to remove any blame from drivers for
bad driving practice.
When
driving we should be constantly taking account of the road conditions
and other road users and drive defensively. We should not just try
to get from A to B in the shortest possible time.
HELEN,
NORFOLK
Re the A1065 I quite agree with Helen. Having moved to Norfolk on
retirement over four years ago I have been horrified by the speeds
some motorists travel at on what are really only country roads even
if they are graded A roads. I suspect some people have not adjusted
to the increasing traffic density. I cannot see why the A1065 does
not have a maximum 50 mph speed limit all the way from Fakenham
to Barton Mills.
MIKE,
HIGH KELLING
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